Holland eyes redevelopment of sprawling Western Machine Tool Works site

HOLLAND, MI - Nearly 20 years has passed since the city purchased the former Western Machine Tool Works property on Lake Macatawa.

Now, city officials are getting ready to entertain proposals for redeveloping the vacant 2.8-acre site between Boatwerks Waterfront Restaurant and the Verplank dock. The City Council is expected to vote Wednesday on asking developers to submit proposals for the property.

City officials have identified waterfront development as one of their top priorities for this year. In a document reviewed by the City Council last month, the Western Machine property was acquired primarily because of its location on Lake Macatawa and opportunities for public enjoyment of the water.

“Continuous public access along the water’s edge remains a fundamental requirement for any redevelopment of the property,” Community and Neighborhood Services Director Phil Meyer wrote in the document. “As planning for the city’s downtown has accelerated in the last decade, so, too, has the recognition of the opportunity that this waterfront property offers this western gateway to our downtown and the access it provides to the lakefront.”

The city acquired the Western Machine property in 1995 from the Bosch family, which owned the company. The city has invested more than $600,000 in acquiring the land and tearing down the building, while a state grant of more than $200,000 aided in an environmental cleanup of the property, according to city documents.

Prior efforts to redevelop the property have been fruitless. When the Western Machine building still stood, proposals were submitted for potential uses such as a fitness and athletic training facility, restaurant, a research and development studio and a mixed-use retail, office and tourism center with boat access.

In 2004, another proposed redevelopment called for a hotel, small shops and public access and amenities, but the project never moved forward.

Wednesday’s meeting takes place at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 270 S. River Ave.